Sorrow
by Mlie-Redfield
Summary: A oneshot about Claire after RECV, how she feels after Steve dies. Never planned to continue this, but the second chapter is now uploaded, and it takes place a year or so after the first.
1. Sorrow

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It had gone a few months now, but what had happened at Rockfort and at the Antarctic facility was sill as clear in her mind as if it had only gone a few days. She couldn't forget – not what had happened, and not him. Steve. She had met him at Rockfort when she tried to get off that island. He had been a prisoner there, just like Claire, and the reason why he had been sent there was because his father had been trying to steal information from Umbrella – the company he'd been working for, and the company that owned the prison at the island. Both Steve and his father had been sent there, and his mother had gotten killed.

The poor guy was younger than she was, Steve had only been seventeen! He had his whole life in front of him, but he'd never gt any older, he would never live one more day again. He had died in Claire's arms at the Antarctic facility. Wesker had mentioned something about bringing him back to life, but even if he succeeded with that, Steve would never be the same again.

Claire shook away that thought, and wiped at a lonely tear that was running down her face. She had to top thinking about him, it was time to move on. She hadn't even gotten a chance to really get to know him, why couldn't she just move on? Of course, the photo of Steve and his family that she was holding in her slightly shaking hands didn't make anything better, but she couldn't just throw it away, could she? Steve looked so happy... If only she'd get another chance to meet him, to tell him what she thought about his very last words... He'd told Claire that he loved her, and those words kept repeating themselves in her head, and it almost always mde her want to cry. Like this time, right now, when she was sitting on the edge of her bed, holding the picture, looking at it so she wouldn't forget what he looked like, his eyes, his hair, his smile... She couldn't help but cry.

There was a careful knock on the door, and Claire called out to the person standing outside that it was okay to come in, and wiped at the tears that wouldn't stop falling.

"Claire, are you alright?" Chris said as he stepped into his sisters room, closing the door behind him, and walking up to the bed to sit down next to her.

Claire nodded. "It's nothing, I'm alright, just thinking about... some things from the past..."

Chris's gaze landed on the photo in her hand. _Of course..._ "Claire, no matter how much you wish for it, you won't get him back..." he said with a calm voice, knowing that those words wouldn't make her happier, but he just didn't think there was anything he coul say that would.

Claire sighed. "I know, but... I just miss him, that's all..."

Her brother was a little shocked. _She's not gonna yell at me this time? She must be really sad, losing someone like that is not really easy._ "Yeah, but you have to let go of him, you have to move on. I don't want to see you sad, you know."

He hugged her, and she rested her face on his shoulder. When their parents died, Chris had been the one who took care of her, getting her into college... He was the only family she had left, and it was because of him that she'd gotten involved with Umbrella and their illegal activities in the first time. If she hadn't gone to Raccoon City or that French facility to look for him, she wouldn't have met Steve at all... But of course, if she hadn't gone to Raccoon, who would've taken care of the little girl, Sherry Birkin? Would Leon find her and help her out, or would she wander around alone in the station until she eventually got killed? That would've happened, a 12 year old girl didn't really have a big chance against the zombies, or any of the other monsters they had encountered in Raccoon.

Claire freed herself from her brother, and put down the photo in her drawer. Everything that had happened since Raccoon City was all because of Umbrella, and even though he died, she was glad that she'd gotten the opportunity to get to meet Steve, even though it hadn't been for a long time. If she hadn't gone to Raccoon, a lot of things would've been different, but he would still be at Rockfort. She didn't want to think about what would happen if she hadn't met him there. Would he even be able to get off that island? But of course, there was still Alfred Ashford and his sister... No, she didn't want to think about it. There was no way to change the past anyway, and thinking about it wouldn't make anything different either. Chris was right, it was time to move on, time to start looking forwards instead of wishing for the past to come back. Because it never does, no matter how much you want it too. What matters the most is the present, and the future. The past is already history.


	2. A Wounded Heart

So... I wrote this in the middle of the night, when I tried to sleep but the ideas just kept coming. I'd never planned to continue this story, but my ideas come whenever they want to X3 This was kinda inspired by a roleplay with yamiishot.

Sorrow Chapter 2: A Wounded Heart

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Seeing her scared face when he was about to kill her had made him remember her. Even as a monster, his love for Claire Redfield, a girl he hadn't known for a long time at all - he'd never gotten the chance - had been strong enough for him to react, to stop the giant axe he'd swinged at her throat just a few inches before it actually hit her. If he had followed through with that hit, he would have killed right away. But not even Alexia Ashford's virus had been able to defeat all of the feelings he had for the redhead.

For a few minutes at the Antarctic base, he had forgotten all about her. This time though, it had been for a lot longer time than that. After almost a year of his new life, when he'd been revived by Albert Wesker after he'd died in Claire's arms, almost a whole year without any memories of what had happened before he woke up, he'd met her again.

It had seemed like she was glad to see him, but as he fought against her and all the other intruders, her friends, he hadn't been able to figure out why. But he hadn't been able to shake off the strange feeling that he' seen her before, that there had been something very familiar about her.

When she'd realized who it was she'd met, Claire's eyes had been filled with tears. Seeing her crying and scared face as he aimed his weapon at her had made him remember it all again. For the second time, she had been the one to make him remember. And as he slowly lowered his gun, silently whispering her name, her face lit up with such joy, such happiness - and sorrow. She smiled brightly when she was sure that he wouldn't hurt her. He could [i]never[/i] hurt her, she was too special, she meant so much to him.

Once again, Claire Redfield had turned him from a coldhearted monster into what he used to be. He'd looked at the others, and they'd seemed to understand that he'd never anted to hurt them. And luckily, the only truly wounded thing was his own heart. What made that feeling even worse was when a brown-haired man, who clearly wasn't her bother, took her hand and gently pulled her away from him, closer to himself. Who was he, and what kind of relationship did he have with Claire? Back at their base a few hours later, he would get the answer, and it sure wouldn't be a happy one.

Steve and Claire had walked away from the others, careful not to be seen or followed by anyone. After a long time of hesitation, Claire's nervous fingers held a tight grip on the golden ring on her left ring finger, mentally preparing herself for hat she was about to say. "Steve..." she started carefully, and he nodded, waiting for her to continue. They were now standing in a small corridor. "Do you remember what you said to me at the Antarctic base?" her voice was shaking, and her hopeful eyes met his.

After a short moment of thinking, trying to figure out what exactly she wanted him to think of, it suddenly hit him, and he smiled. "Yes. How can I ever forget it? It took a lot of courage to finally tell you that..."

He was surprised when she suddenly hugged him, tears of joy falling down her sweet face. "I've missed you so much, I thought I'd lost you forever."

A few metres away from them, at the corner of the corridor, Carlos Oliveira lost all of his hope when he heard his fiancee say those words. He closed his eyes, leaning back against the wall, slowly falling down to sit on the floor. He could almost feel his heart break. He knew now that she'd never been able to forget about Steve Burnside.


End file.
